Crypto Markets Still In Meltdown Mode As Investors Hope For A Floor

The fantastic fall of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continued today, as overwhelmingly high volume continued what’s been a massive meltdown.

In early trading, bitcoin stood at the $5,500 level, down about 7% over the last 24 hours after a severe plunge. That’s a 2018 low and down about $1,000 from its previous highs. The question now: Where’s the floor?

Ripple’s XRP has taken over the number two position in market capitalization after yesterday’s plunge, surpassing ether ($178) and up today about 1.38 percent to 0.47.

The real suffering came from Bitcoin Cash. Today, the fourth-largest cryptocurrency enters into a hard fork, splitting into two separate coins, Bitcoin ABC (the original Bitcoin Cash) and Bitcoin SV (for Satoshi’s Vision). The actual chain split should happen in the next few hours.

The division will create two blockchains, and miners will get to work and largely determine which of the two chains will be most successful and win the hashing power and allegiance of the market.

The hard fork is largely the result of a disagreement between cryptocurrency gurus Roger Ver and Craig Wright. The two have argued over the direction of Bitcoin Cash, with Ver advocating for an upgrade in its capabilities, while Wright backing a version that would raise the block size 128MB from its current 32MB. It echoes the arguments that raged when Bitcoin Cash was originally created out of a split in the bitcoin camps.

For hodlers, the split means that they will essentially get free money, as major exchanges like Coinbase and Binance promise to give holders of Bitcoin Cash the new currency on a 1:1 basis after the fork.

Coinbase indicated that it will pause all buys, sells, and trading of BCH starting at 8:00AM PST on Thursday on Coinbase.com, in the iOS and Android apps, and on Coinbase Pro and Prime. Customers will not be able to sell or remove your BCH from Coinbase. No timeframe for restoration was given. Other exchanges have also halted trading until the shakeout establishes its security.

For investors, the hammering again calls into question whether institutions, which have been nibbling at the edges, can stomach the extreme market volatility in digital currency. The continuing bloodbath does little to assure them that it’s okay to head into the market full force.